Liquefier



Sept. 15,1942.

A. T. THOMPSON LIQUEFIER Filed Oct. 26, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l sept. 15 1942.

A. T, THOMPSON LIQUEFIER Filed Oct. 2G, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Sept. 15, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LIQUEFIER Albert T. Thompson, New Orleans, La.

Application October 26, 1937, Serial No. 171,149

(Cl. E-3) 2 Claims.

The invention relates to liqueiiers and particularly to a closure therefor wherein the closure is provided with spring holding means cooperating with the wall of the liquecr for holding the closure in position as pressure is built up in the receptacle for a final sealing of the closure.

A further object is to provide spring latching means between the closure and the receptacle wall for initially holding the closure until pressure is built up Within the receptacle.

A further object is to provide the closure with an annular spring flange on its outer side, adapted to spring into an annular groove in the receptacle opening and hold the closure in position as pressure is built up within the receptacle.

Heretofore in the art of liqueers having internal closures, it has been necessary to hold the closure in engagement with the receptacle opening until suflicient pressure is obtained Within the receptacle for holding the closure sealed, therefore it is a further object of the invention to provide spring latching means for the closure for holding the same in closed position until the pressure is built up.

With the above and other objects in View the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts as hereinafter set forth, shown in the drawings, described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made Within the scope of what is claimed Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of the liqueiier.

Figure 2 is a vertical transverse sectional view through the lower end of the liquei'ler.

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view of the liquefier.

Figure 4 is a detail sectional view through one side of the cover, showing the same being forced into inter-engagement with the bottom of the receptacle.

Figure 5 is a view in elevation of a modified form'of the invention.

Figure 6 is a vertical transverse sectional view through the lower end of the receptacle shown in` Figure 5.

Figure 7 is a bottom plan view of the liquefier shown in Figure 5.

Figure 8 is a detail perspective View of the spring holding means shown in Figure 6.

Figure 9 is a view in elevation of a further modified form.

Figure 10 is a vertical transverse sectional 55 view through the lower end of the liqueer shown in Figure 9.

Figure 11 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line II--Il of Figure 10.

Figure 12 is a view in elevation of a further modified form of liqueiier.

Figure 13 is a vertical transverse sectional View taken on line l3-l3 of Figure 12.

Figure 14 is a horizontal sectional View taken on line lli-I4 of Figure 12.l

Figure 15 is a detail perspective view of the spring arm for holding the closure in closed position.

Referring `to the drawings, the numeral l designates the receptacle and 2 the bottom thereof. These numerals are general to all the forms.

Referring to the forms shown in Figures 1 to 4, the bottom 2 is provided with a filling opening 3 having an annular channel 4 in the periphery thereof. captive closure 5, which is connected to the inner wall of the receptacle by means of a chain 6, which prevents the closure from assuming a position too far from the opening for the operator to insert a tool into the threaded openings 1 in the closure to pull the closure to closed position after a filling operation, for instance after carbon dioxide has been placed in the liquefier. The closure 5 is provided with an annular spring flange 8, which is received within the annular channel 4 for the initial holding operation. In positioning the closure over the opening, the operator places the tool in the threaded opening l, and brings the cover to closed position, and at which time an axial pull on the closure causes the annular spring flange 8 to spring over the bevelled shoulder 9 of the receptacle opening and into the annular channel 4, at which time the packing flange I0 of the closure engages the compressible packing material Il, as clearly shown in Figure 4.

As the carbon dioxide lquenes and gasees, the increasing pressure on the closure completes the sealing operation. After the liqueer is relieved of its gas pressure the cover can be forced inwardly for a refilling operation. It will be noted that the lling opening 3 is relatively large, hence the interior of the receptacle can be easily cleaned or sterilized, which is one of the objections with completely closed structures, valve filled, now in general use.

Referring to Figures 5 to 8 inclusive, the operation is substantially the same as in Figure 1, however in this form the underside of the clo- Disposed within the receptacle I is a sure a is provided with spaced spring arms I2, adapted to grip the headed lugs I3 Within the closure opening 3 for the initial holding of the closure in position. Spring arms I2 are preferably provided with registering recesses I4 for receiving opposite sides of the headed lugs I3 and it will be noted that their outer edges I5 are inclined downwardly and inwardly so they will guide the closure to an axial position when placed over the lling opening, without jamming or sticking, incident to expansion and contraction under the varying temperatures. This is also true of the form shown in Figure 1.

Referring to Figures 9 to 11 inclusive, in this form, the closure 5b is provided with an annular bead I6, which is received by spring arms I'I, welded or otherwise secured to the inner side of the bottom 2. These spring arms have a range of exibility to take care of expansion and contraction under extreme ranges of temperature and will hold the closure in closed position at all times, thereby preventing the entrance of foreign matter under expanded conditions when the device is not in use'.

Referring to the form shown in Figures 12 to 15, in this form the closure 5c is provided with an extension arm I8, which is hingedly connected at I9 within the liquefier I, and with an extension arm 2Q, which is received between spring arms 2i carried by the bottom 2 of the receptacle. It will be noted that sufficient space -is left between the spring arms 2l and the closure 5c at 22 so variations in temperature under expansion and contraction will not cause the 'cover to stick so it will not properly seat. The

operation of the liqueiier in this form is the same as in the other forms.

From the above it will be seen that a liqueer is provided with spring holding means Vfor initially holding the closure in closed position after a lling operation, and that said spring means will not stick incident to expansion and contraction, and that a liqueer is provided with a relatively large lling opening, which allows access to the interior of the liqueer for cleaning and sterilizing purposes. It is to be understood the device may be used for containing various kinds of gases.

The invention having been set forth what is claimed as new and useful is:

1. The combination with a liquefier cover disposed within the chamber of a liqueer and larger than and covering a filling opening in the wall of the liqueer, of means for initially holding said cover in position while pressure builds up in the chamber, said means comprising spaced radially disposed lugs Within the lling opening and channel shaped spring members carried by the cover and adapted to register with and rec'eive the lugs when the cover is in closed position.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1 wherein the inner faces of the flanges of the channel shaped spring members incline downwardly and ALBERT T. THOMPSON. 

